06.03.21
Back at the old shop, before the world was digital. I’m stood in the doorway on the grey dial telephone that used to be there fixed to the wall. It’s summertime and the shopping centre bristles and is bathed in sunlight. The shop is busy, too. Bran Van 3000’s ‘Drinking In L.A.’ plays. GNX walks around the shop with two Bloodhounds on leads. He wants to take them for a walk, but every time he tries to leave someone wants to pet them. The dogs are docile, but eager to go. Eventually, he passes me and steps out into the busy thoroughfare, but he stumbles and falls to the floor. “I have to go,” I say into the phone. I help him to his feet.
07.03.21
A party in a walled Japanese garden in summertime. The lawns are neat and bordered with many brightly coloured flowers that bob in the breeze. A woman appears at the garden gate. The music stops and everybody cheers and applauds her. She pulls a face of mock surprise, laughs and enters.
09.03.21
On a steam train to the city with Brix Smith. The train stops at a country station. There is a shop on the platform and I get off to buy something to eat. BS says that I won’t have time. There is a long queue of school kids at the shop and I keep checking to make sure that the train doesn’t leave. When I get to the head of the queue I ask the vendor for a Bounty bar, but he gives me a polythene bag of Tunnocks’ chocolate teacakes! “42p,” he says. I give him handfuls of coins – many of which fall to the floor – and he slowly counts them. A whistle blows and the train begins to build up steam. “Take it all,” I tell the vendor and grab the polythene bag and run toward the train. But it leaves without me.
Running round the strange station, looking at my watch, wondering what to do.
nickreeves 
A place where a whole bag of Tunnocks teacakes cost 42p…can only be heaven!
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I knaa, right?!
well, that or i was dreaming.
🙂
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At least you had a nice snack as you wait for the next train. 🙂
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That’s true, MM!
When I woke up I went into town on the look out for some Tunnock’s teacakes. I hadn’t had one since forever. I could taste them…but, nothing!
🙂
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Oh, no, the archetypal anxiety dream! I hate it when that happens.
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Oh, definitely, Liz. They’re quite rare for me, but I figure that they’re better out than in! If I look back over my dreams there are generally certain subjects that return again and again – trains, my old work place, the same friends from the past, one particular friend who passed, woods, parties and festivals: each, of course, symbolises something. But Tunnock’s teacakes has me quite curious!
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It’s fascinating to think of our minds work in our sleep.
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Dreams.. so interesting. I rarely remember mine but they’re always about people and conversations – often boring even while I am having them. What does that say?!?! My husband often dreams about machines or sci fi type plots. Yours sound very believable, very sensory.
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The trick, if there is a trick, is to have a notebook at your bedside and jot something down as soon as you wake. Otherwise, well, you know how tenuous they are – so vivid one minute and gone the next! Yours are definitely connected with communication and stories. Does your husband write, too?
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No. 🙂 He is creative in engineering but not writing.
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I was just thinking about the world before digital.
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Anything particular? Or just daydreaming?
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We didn’t have cell phones when I was a teenager. We didn’t have Uber or Lyft. We couldn’t place weed orders online and get free delivery.
My life would have been 1000 times better had a cab not cost a arm and a leg. Now people complain Lyft and Uber fairs are “too expensive” and do not tip. We didn’t even have access to computers in school until I was older. You had to use a payphone or a pager. Riding our bikes to the gas station to page our dudes for weed IF he had any. Daydreaming? Nah. Life is a nightmare.
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That was a big IF, PoeEternal!
Online orders? free deliveries?
They don’t know they’re born!
Thanks for dropping by, D.
Be happy 🙂
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They are desensitized. Narcissism. They don’t care.
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Coincidentally, today I was remembering an anti-digital song (from around 1980 I think) called “Living by Numbers” by a band called New Musik.
What struck me was how prophetic some of its lyrics were. In particular, there’s the line ‘You bet that someone’s counting you’.
It’s almost chillingly accurate, in the context of all the current hoo-hah about Google’s & Facebook’s appropriation of people’s personal data.
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I thought this rang a bell somewhere, Bill. But when I checked it out I recalled it at once – cool pop, definitely – hints of XTC, M, &, er, Trio? – and why not! The whole world was wide open to possibility.
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Oh my goodness – Trio!!!! What WAS that all about?
It was as if three members of Kraftwerk had figured upon doing a Chas and Dave tribute act. That, I imagine, would have been the end result.
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Hahaha! It was wide open!
Gertcha, Goethe!
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